Covington/Maple Valley Reporter, December 02, 2011

BY TJ MARTINELL

[email protected]

As the state Legislature began its special session in Olympia Nov. 28, parents, teachers and Tahoma School District staff ral-lied against proposed cuts to education spending.

Th e rally, held at the Four Corners in Maple Valley, was designed to bring awareness to the com-munity about how spend-ing cuts would impact their local schools. Th ose in attendance at the rally also hoped that it would

alert politicians from their district.

“We want to send a mes-sage to our legislators that the cuts can’t go any fur-ther,” said Kristin Edlund, who works in the Teaching

and Learning depart-ment in the Tahoma School District ad-ministrative offi ce. “Especially with the increased account-

ability for both teach-ers and students, we can’t

be held to these increasing high standards if education (funding) is being cut.”

One of the proposals

BY DENNIS BOX

[email protected]

Aft er considerable discussion and testimony from the public, the Covington City Council approved a 0.5 percent utility tax increase to complete the fi rst phase of the Cov-ington Community Park.

Th e park is located at corner of 180th Avenue Southeast and Southeast 240th Street.

Th e vote to approve the increase was 6-1 with Council-man Mark Lanza dissenting.

Th e 0.5 percent increase will move the city’s utility tax to 6 percent with 1/12 of the tax collected dedicated to the completing phase one of the park. Th e increase will add $2

per person per month.During council discussion prior to the vote Mayor Pro

Tem Jeff Wagner said, “I want to look to the future. I want to take care of my family now and the families in the city.”

Councilman Mark Lanza said it was no secret he had opposed the tax increase, but, supported building the park.

“I certainly have not taken this lightly and it has been hard,” Lanza said.

Th e councilman said he is concerned about the funds the city may lose because of the state budget problems and the ongoing economic problems in the region and nation.

“Unfortunately I don’t have a rosy outlook for the future,” Lanza said. “If this was a good economy or even a stable economy I would have no problem with (0.5)

percent.”Councilman David Lucavish said he was also

concerned with the state budget problems, but said he decided to support the increase aft er considerable thought.“I really think this is so strategic we have to do

it,” Lucavish said.Councilman Wayne Snoey noted, “ Th ere are so many

uses for the park.”

COVINGTON

MAPLEVALLEY

A DIVISION OF SOUND PUBLISHING

LOCAL | A look at Kentlake Drama’s production of ‘The Pajama Game’ [page 3]

GRAPPLING FOR A TITLE | Tahoma returns 12 wrestlers from last season’s ninth-place team [15]FRIDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2011

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COVINGTON | MAPLE VALLEY | BLACK DIAMONDREPORTERCity Council approves utility tax increase

Community rallies against education cuts

Clark Kostohoris, a third-grade teacher at Shadow Lake Elementary waves a sign during a rally on Monday. TJ MARTINELL, The Reporter

BY KRIS HILL

[email protected]

Shortly aft er school started the day before Th anksgiving, third graders at Rock Creek Elementary in Maple Valley had a holiday gift for Vine Maple Place.

Organized by Tina Mc-Donough, whose daughter Trista is a student there, along with teacher Lisa Mocquet, the fund-raiser was a huge success generat-ing $850.

“Did you guys have fun doing this,” McDonough asked the youngsters, to which they replied in youthful unison, “Yes!”

Th e seven classes of third grade students had fi lled up piggy banks for two weeks as a pilot project fundraiser for the Maple Valley-based Christian non-profi t that serves homeless single parents and their children by providing transitional housing, fi nancial training, counseling and connec-tions to educational opportuni-

Coin count adds up for Vine Maple Place

Collen Starr reacts when Rock Creek Elementary third graders respond enthusiastically about doing another fundraiser for Vine Maple Place, the non-profi t she is director of and co-founded. KRIS HILL, The Reporter

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[ more TAX page 4 ]

[ more CUTS page 4][ more COIN page 4 ]

Rock Creek Elementary third-graders’ piggy bank fundraiser brings in $850 for non-profi t

WEBSITE | Check the website for breaking news stories and weather updates.maplevalleyreporter.com or covingtonreporter.com

December 2, 2011[2]

BY TJ MARTINELL

[email protected]

A 1950s union strike in a textile factory doesn’t sound like the best setting for a musical comedy, but, for Kentlake Drama it has worked well in its produc-tion of Richard Adler and Jerry Ross’ “Th e Pajama Game.”

Based on the novel “7 1/2 Cents” by Richard Bissell, the musical follows the plight of workers in a pajama factory. It also high-lights the confl ict between the older and younger gen-eration in terms of values and morals as well as the shift ing roles for men and women.

Pam Cressey, Kentlake’s Drama production director, said that she isn’t entirely sure how it works as a musical comedy, given the serious themes it addresses. Nevertheless, she thought it was perfect for the talent she currently has at her disposal.

“It’s a crazy romp through history,” she ex-plained. “I wanted to do a period musical. I love mak-ing them (the students) do research. It’s a great one for them to cut their teeth on. I’ve got a lot of freshmen.”

Th e Kentlake produc-tion of “Th e Pajama Game” is also unique in that it features double casted parts for each role. Cressey explained this was done because 60 students audi-tioned for 30 parts. Instead of cut out some students she decided to give all of them an opportunity to participate.

“I just doubled every-thing,” she said.

Th e two main characters, Sid Sorokin and Cath-

erine “Babe” Williams, are therefore played by four actors. Sorokin is played by Zach Vermilion and Mitch Hillyard, while “Babe” is played by Emily Halver-son and Julia Payment. Th e relationship between Sorokin and Babe, who fall in love, emphasizes the sexual tension and confl ict over gender roles in society at the time.

“It’s the only confl ict in the story, so we’re pushing it pretty hard,” Cressey said.

Sorokin is the factory superintendent, while Babe is the leader of the union threatening to strike unless the workers receive a pay raise, which leads to a dicey situation for both of them as they must decide which is more important: love or their political and profes-sional aspirations.

“She (Babe) cares more about the union win-ning the strike,” Cressey said. “She’s a new kind of woman.”

“She’s the strong business woman,” Halverson said. “But she does want to be the vulnerable one and to be taken care of.”

Sorokin, on the other hand, “doesn’t want to lose his job, so he puts his love on hold until the strike is done.”

Playing the same role with another person sound-ed tricky at fi rst, according to Payment, but in the end worked well.

“It’s always scary because there that’s tendency to have some friction,” she said. “But me and Emily are really close.”

Halverson added that they try to base their per-formances off of the charac-ter, rather than imitate each other.

“You try to mimic the character and do what the character would do,” she said. “We talk about it all the time.”

VISUALIZING THE OLD RULES OF SOCIETY

Th e dichotomy of sexual promiscuity and 1950s morality is explored both in the dialogue, action and the stage props. For example, characters kiss behind a transparent wall or build-ing, so the audience can see what was at that time concealed due to social expectations.

“Th ey’re putting on this facade but it’s quite see through,” Cressey said. “It’s kind of blatant (now). We don’t have the same values as they did. In the 1950s, they were promiscuous and wild. (In the play) they’re all pretending to be these perfect middle Americans. It was a weird time in culture to hide what now is out in the open. Th ey were very into their own issues of what was right or wrong. Th ey were questioning their upbringing and values.”

“Th e Pajama Game,” Cressey explained, is also very much a battle of the sexes. Women and men in the factory are delegated very specifi c responsibili-ties, which is symbolized by their attire of either dungaree overalls for the men or bright pink skirts for the women.

“Th e woman have always been in charge, you know,” Cressey said. “Th e men think they were running it, but women ran it under the rug. Th ey let the men think they were in charge. We still have the battles, but, it’s nothing like this.”

According to Cressey, the

women “use their bedroom savvy to control things,” during the labor dispute, something which is treated tongue-in-cheek.

RESEARCHING A DIFFERENT PERIOD OF HISTORY

Many students, such as Payment, noticed aft er reading the script how dif-ferent sex was treated in the musical.

“Today, everyone’s so open in their sexuality and before it was very hidden,” she said.

“It plays upon how in the 1950s people didn’t just lie around,” Vermilion said. “Th ere was (supposed to be) marriage fi rst. My char-acter is the opposite. I feel like he’s responsible, but he knows what he wants and gets what he wants.”

“I feel like Sid is the only normal one up there,” Hill-yard said.

At the same time, Vermilion stated, Sorokin very much represented the prevalent attitude of the time.

“He wants Babe, but at the same time he chooses his career fi rst,” he said. “He has aspect of himself that are relatable, but he holds the values of the 1950s, working hard to get what he wants.”

Besides sexual mores of the time, the union strikes and the historical context it was based in was another issue the students had to do research on. Th e title of the novel, “7 1/2 Cents,” refers to the hourly raise the workers desire — seven and a half cents — which the company management refuses to budge on, caus-ing the strike. Today, the national minimum wage is $7.25 and $8.67 in Wash-

Kentlake brings humor to the stage in ‘The Pajama Game’

[3]December 2 , 2011

Kentlake student Daniel Lombard holds up a pair of pajamas in the opening scene of “The Pajama Game.” TJ MARTINELL, The Reporter

[ more GAME page 4 ]

SOOS CREEK PARK HABITAT RESTORATION

The Soos Creek Park Habitat Restoration event is set

for 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday.

The Sierra Club South King County Group, Friends of Soos

Creek Park, and King County Parks will be present.

The park runs through Renton, Kent and Covington.

As part of the restoration, 735 native plants will be planted in

areas previously cleared of invasive species to restore

and enhance habitat.Drinks and snacks

will be provided.Work clothes and

gloves will be needed. All tools will be provided.

Meet at the parking lot at the south end of the trail, along 148th Avenue Southeast off

Southeast 266th Street, east of Lake Meridian Park.

For information contact Mark Johnston at

[email protected] or 253-639-3862.

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ington State. In 1975, the national minimum wage was 75 cents an hour.

“It’s pretty funny to think about it now,” Cressey said. “It’s defi nitely outdated.”

Th is is among the reasons Cressey said she encour-aged the students to do research on the period.

“If you don’t have the history behind it, the story doesn’t work in modern day,” she said.

Besides the story, the songs are another critical aspect of the production.

“Almost every song is about breaking social code,” Cressey said. “It’s huge on chorus, which to me this is the strongest chorus of students I’ve ever had.”

“I love (the) singing,” Payment said.

“Th ey’re fun,” Halverson said. “You can put so much

personality into them.”Ultimately, irony and

lightheartedness are what makes the comedy work, Cressey said.

“(It’s) hunky dory and fun because everyone wins,” she said. “We have come a ways, but not really — that’s the humor.”

“Th e Pajama Game” premieres at 7 p.m. Dec. 1 at Kentlake High School and runs on Dec. 2, 3, 8, 9, 10, 15, 16 and 17. Saturday shows start at 2 p.m.

Tickets are $10 general admission and $8 for stu-dents and seniors.

To purchase tickets, visit www.brownpapertickets.com.Reach TJ Martinell at [email protected] or 425-432-1209 ext. 5052.To comment on this story go to www.covingtonre-porter.com.

[ GAME from page 3]

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ties, among other services.McDonough asked how

many of the students gave up tooth fairy money or quarters for popcorn and many raised their hands.

“Th is program that Vine Maple Place started this year is a pilot program,

so, you guys were special to be picked to do this,” McDonough said. “What a great gift to give to Vine Maple Place with Th anks-giving being tomorrow. You guys have been amazing. What you’ve done the past two weeks has been amaz-ing.”

Colleen Starr, director and co-founder of VMP, told the children, “You did awesome!”

“You’ve been a wonderful encouragement to us,” Starr said. “What you’re doing is helping children and their parents get out of their cars and into safe, warm homes.”

Th is project began out of an idea which came from a VMP development team brainstorming session, Mc-Donough told the Reporter in mid-November, and she said she was happy to take the idea to her daughter’s school to see if there was an interest.

McDonough pitched the idea to the third grade teachers, who embraced it, then to their students who were enthusiastic.

It was a great oppor-tunity, Mocquet told the Reporter in an email inter-view, to teach the children about being community contributors and “this type of fundraiser fi ts in per-fectly with our curriculum and our community needs.”

Aft er the children learned of how much money they raised — they put coins into clear plastic banks shaped like houses with the Vine Maple Place logo printed on the side — they all got to have ice

cream provided by Mc-Donough’s company One.7, Inc.

Mocquet told the third graders on Nov. 23 she was impressed with them.

“When I came to tell you about this you were so polite,” she said. “You have such giving hearts. I want to thank you for having such generous hearts. I am so proud of you.”

Reach Kris Hill at [email protected] or 425-432-1209 ext. 5054.To comment on this story go to www.maplevalleyre-porter.com.

[ COIN from page 1]

made would cut the school year by fi ve days, which would also reduce teachers’ salaries, an idea Edlund thinks is counterproductive.

“It’s not good for kids,” she said. “Th ose schools are designed for a 180-day school year.”

She also added that jobs would be lost as a result.

Shawn Sheller, a teacher at the Tahoma Middle School, expressed dismay at the inverse proportion of funding compared to the academic achievements by the school district.

“We’re (one of ) the most effi cient school systems,” she said. “If you look at our funding compared to other states, it doesn’t compare.”

Sheller also explained that as the state continues to cut education spending, the school districts are forced to rely more and more on levies, a system which she said is not practical and ultimately unsustainable.

Scott Mitchell, president of the Tahoma Education Association, stated that concerned residents should

contact their legislators and express their concerns about education cuts. Like Edlund, he is not in favor of the reduced school year proposal.

“Th e problem with the cuts is that kids need to be in school, especially now,” he said.

Mitchell stated that the half percent increase to the state sales tax was a “viable” alternative.

Among those attending the rally was Laurel Menard,

principal of Lake Wilderness Elementary. According to the Offi ce of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, Lake Wilderness had 972 students in May making it one of the largest elementary schools in the state, Menard said.

“I think just more (people) should know about what is going on in our legislature,” Menard said.

Cuts, she said, would lead to “larger class size, less time for professional development” for teach-ers.

“We’re only seeing the beginning if we continue down this road,” she said. “It’s going to be diffi cult

for us to provide education.”

Reach TJ Martinell at 425-432-1209 ext. 5052.To comment on this story go to maplevalleyreporter.com

[ CUTS from page 1]

Following the vote Mayor Margaret Harto said, “Th is council should be commended for a thorough and some-times emotional conversation.”

In 2012 the city will direct about $135,000 to the park capital fund and about $180,000 each year aft er 2012 for maintenance of the park.

One of the reasons the majority of the council supported the ordinance was the city had received about $1.5 million in grants from the state and King County. If the city was unable to come up with

balance to build the park the grant money would have gone back.

Staff told the council it would have been more diffi cult to receive grant money in the future if they were unable to use these funds on the park.

Th e city has spent about $600,000 in designing and planning the park up to now.

Th e site is about 30 acres and is a collection of four parcels purchased by the city in 2003 and then brought into King County’s urban growth boundary in 2004. It was annexed

into the city in 2008.Phase one includes a soccer fi eld and a trail system. In addition, the long term plan for Covington Commu-

nity Park includes a plaza, volleyball and basketball courts, a large playground, a plaza, tennis courts and an outdoor performance area along with trails winding around the edge.

Th e idea, if all goes to plan, is to break ground on the fi rst phase in the spring.

Reach Dennis Box at [email protected] or 425-432-1209 ext. 5050.To comment on this story go to www.covingtonreporter.com.

[ TAX from page 1]

Mark Lanza

This council should be commended for a thorough and sometimes emotional conversation.” Mayor Margaret Harto

EDUCATION

RALLYSLIDESHOW ONLINE…maplevalleyreporter.com

[5]December 2 , 2011

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BY TJ MARTINELL

maplevalleyreporter.com

As winter weather ap-proaches, Covington and Maple Valley Public Works departments are prepar-ing to handle any potential fl ooding, snow or ice.

Much of the work — such as road patching — was completed during the summer, thanks to the interlocal agreement signed between Covington and Maple Valley in June.

“I think it’s been go-ing really well,” said Steve Clark, Maple Valley Public Works Director. “We’ve got good prices for our con-tracts. We were able to do good work during the sum-mer. Life has been extended really well given the level of cracks we’ve been dealing with. I think the condi-tions of the roads is set for the winter. We’re going to

have damage… but we’re in pretty good shape.”

Covington Public Works Director Glenn Akramoff described the interlocal agreement as having been “fantastic” so far.

“Th e patching crew this summer did a great job,” he said. “We did a lot more work than we would have done separately. Th e communication between the two cities is really high. It’s daily communication. I count it as a big success. I’d say we’ve saved some money, but what we’ve got-ten is more service for the same dollar.”

With the recent heavy rainfall, Akramoff said, crews have gone out and inspected areas where potential fl ooding might occur.

“When it starts raining at this level… we have a list we go out and check,” he

said. “Th e crews have been doing that. Engineers do inspections and problem solving. Th ey’ve been do-ing the last couple of days. When it gets like this we’re checking drains and the problems areas that we know about and problems in the past. We also check any new developments because that’s usually where the problems are.”

Akramoff stated they maintain a state of pre-paredness from mid-October to the end of April having learned from experi-ence from years like 2008 when there was more snow and 2009 when there were more storms.

“We just know that it’s likely at some time to be a part of our program,” he said. “Some years nothing happened like last year. A little bit of snow and rain, but that was it.”

Clark stated a similar thing is being done in Maple Valley.

“We’re constantly moni-toring the weather through the National Weather Service,” he said. “We look at the temperatures and we stay in contact with that so if the weather is icing up we’ve got deicer that we’ll apply to the roads. We did fi nd a couple of minor problems which are things to go on our repair list.”

Clark added that they have stockpiled sandbags to help in the event of heavy snowfall and planned out snow routes.

Covington recently replaced its old four yard dump truck, according to Akramoff .

Th e new truck has been retrofi tted with snow and ice equipment.

“We’re new cities,” he said. “We bought older

equipment to get started and it was time upgrade. It’s good to go.”

Clark stated they are cur-rently looking a new dump truck as well.

Th e City Council recently authorized Clark to use $75,000 to purchase the truck and any necessary equipment.

“It was my recommenda-tion that we upgrade the one large truck and two one-ton trucks,” Clark said. “We’ve been maintain-ing the truck well. It’s had the engine worked, the hydraulics are okay, but it’s still old nevertheless. It’s just an old truck. Before it breaks down we want to get a newer one.”

Th e interlocal agreement will also aid either city if they encounter diffi culty handling any problems.

“If we get behind the curve they (Covington)

assist us,” Clark said. “We have agreements with King County as well.”

Whether or not this year will bring harsh weather, both Akramoff and Clark said they want to be ready.

“We always try to prepare for the worst and hope for the best,” Clark said. “So around here it’s diffi cult to say because snow comes in diff erent sections and pockets. It really is kind of a hit and miss. We moni-tor what’s going on and we check our equipment and maintain it.”

“We plan for it, we’re ready for it, we’ll shift from the day to day activity to re-act,” Akramoff said. “But… they say this year is going to be like last year and some of us who’ve been around Washington a long time feel like December may be more hectic than last year. We’ll see.”

Cities plan for winter weather emergencies

Tahoma Bears’ 2011 cross country team at the Maple Valley City Council’s Nov. 28 meeting with Mayor Noel Gerken and Deputy Mayor Victoria Laise Jonas COURTESY PHOTO.

Nov. 29, 2011 was declared Taho-ma Bears Cross Country Team Day by the Maple Valley City Council.

Th ey were honored at the Nov. 28 City Council meeting for their “demonstrated especially outstand-ing skill, spirit, and eff ort.”

Th e Tahoma cross country team competed in the state championship

meet in Pasco on Nov. 5, where the girls’ team took fi rst and the boys team took eighth place.

Th e team included Abby Atchin-son, Maddy Dennis, Cheyenne Greenside, Amanda Kiefer, Juli-anna Mock, Ellizabeth Oosterhout, Katelyn Sherick, Delaney Tiernan, Mikayal Ward, Bridget Wulfi ng, Ri-

ley Campbell, James Dagley, Caleb Eades, Merritt Kropelnicki, Jacob Larsen, Brendan Newell, Chase Pierson, Travis Scacco and Tyler Ward.

Th e teams were coached by Gary Conner, Jeff Brady, Jodi Hoffb uhr and Anne Hobson.

Tahoma cross country team honored

December 2, 2011[6]

I am a technology geek.True, in May 2009 I wrote in a column in this

newspaper that even as a lover of gadgets, there’s too much technology out there and I refused to jump on the Twitter bandwagon. I eventually relented. I’m @hill_kris if you want to follow me.

In the past two and a half years I have come to recognize the value of technology both in my personal and professional life.

Twitter has allowed me to keep up with what’s going on. I don’t post a ton, but, I follow quite a few people or entities that keep track of local news as well as national events. Plus, it’s fun to see what some of the celebrities I admire tweet, because you just need a laugh sometimes.

I’ve gotten story ideas from Twitter. I also keep up with some of the high school sports teams that way. And I’ve connected with student jour-nalists, as well — that’s you Spencer Transier.

Meanwhile, Facebook has become a great way to fi nd stories, to connect with sources as well as share stories with friends and family who may not otherwise see my articles because they live in other parts of the country.

My recent tech love aff air has been the CoverI-tLive app for my Android phone. I’ve used it ex-tensively during fall sports to cover high school football and it seems to have been well received. What I particularly enjoyed about live blogging football games was the interaction I was able to get with people who were following along. I got comments and questions. It was fantastic. Plus, it allowed me to take notes in a format that I could read, much better than trying to translate the scribbling in my notebook.

And as I have embraced technology, I have been trying to persuade my boss, Regional Edi-tor Dennis Box, to get a smartphone.

Well, in truth, I’ve been shaming him into abandoning his little Nokia candybar phone and join us in this decade. He has, to put it mildly, been resistant.

I don’t understand why he keeps making up excuses. He gives his cell phone number out to anyone passing by, it seems, and that Bluetooth headset of his is never far from reach if it isn’t on his ear.

But, that’s about all his phone is good for: calls and texts, maybe a little Twitter.

I’ve been telling him for more than a year now he needs a smartphone, specifi cally an Android

phone, but he doesn’t want to pay for the phone, the data plan, insert additional excuses here.

A couple weeks ago, however, he lost the will to fi ght the smartphone pull. I got an email ask-ing about which T-Mobile Android device he should purchase.

Yes! (Insert Tiger Woods fi st pump here.)I reviewed his options and responded im-

mediately. I told him to just call his carrier back and tell them which one he wanted. Or he could go to one of the other third-party authorized resellers in the area, you know those big box electronics stores, a warehouse store, or even Wally World.

During a recent trip to Costco in Covington I noticed the store had an excellent price on a high end Android phone with a contract renewal, so, I suggested Dennis go check it out.

Dennis, however, is the only person I know who works more hours than I do — with the exception of high school coaches and principals, but, that’s a topic for another column — so he’s always “too busy” to go upgrade. Please envision me rolling my eyes.

I told him recently that with our new Facebook-driven commenting system for our website, it would make it easier for him to keep track of the discussion happening online, but all I got in response was a dirty look.

He could be cool like me and live blog events with a keyboard on the app rather than semi-cryptic shorthand posts from Twitter.

And I’ve explained he could read his email at all hours of the day or night, anywhere he has signal or WiFi, on a phone with a screen that is bigger than two inches.

Managing our Twitter feeds would be easier. And he would be able to stay connected to con-versations going in the community in a greater way.

It would make Dennis a better journalist.Or he’d sleep less due to playing with his

phone.Still, he hasn’t gotten a smartphone. Always some excuse, you know like, “I had to

work all weekend because you actually wanted to take the weekend off for once.”

Please envision Dennis rolling his eyes and doing his imaginary hair fl ip here.

I’ll keep pestering him. Th e little phone he has now is nearly three

years old and on its last legs. I suspect that it will have to fully die before he

replaces it with a smartphone because he’s one of the only people I know who still actually talks on his phone.

What’s funny is Dennis is in many ways as much of a technology geek as I am but, like me, he’s quite stubborn.

So, if you see him around and he’s still using that circa-2005 technology Nokia, tell him to get a smartphone already.

Perhaps he will bend to community pressure fi nally.

And then once he gets on the bandwagon with the other 40 percent of smartphone-carrying Americans, I will get to say, “I told you so.”

Th en being the tech geek, I will be pressed into service as his personal tech support guru, at which point I will curse being right.

Maybe there is such a thing as too much tech-nology aft er all.

I could be a great critic of school systems, especially in the light of all the battles we have fought during the past 20 years to dismantle the structures in the system that foster disproportionality and a number of disparities aff ecting impoverished students of all colors.

However, educators are not the only ones responsible for educating students in a given community. Th e

community and the families of students have a more important role; that is to be sure their students get the best education possible

EDUCATORS DO CARE; BUT THERE’S TOO MUCH TO TEACH AND NOT ENOUGH TIME

As a career educator with 13 years in the class-room, and 13 years as an administrator both in the buildings and in the central offi ce, I never met a single teacher or other persons in schools, including cus-todians and secretaries, who didn’t want every child to learn as much as possible.

Even educators who were ineff ective, several of whom I processed/counseled out of education, wanted the best for

students. Th ere have been times in the Kent School

District when the entire district was geared up and led the way to address a variety of diversity, equity, and justice issues.

And, we made signifi cant changes, several of which are now institutionalized in the district. Yet we still have some of the major issues that fi rst caught our attention decades ago; things that we said must change.

Included among those issues is what people now call the “achievement gap” and now also called the “opportunity gap.”

Disproportionality in discipline and in other areas continues to exist as well.

When public education fi rst came into

● Q U O T E O F N O T E : ”If it keeps up, man will atrophy all his limbs but the push-button fi nger.” -Frank Lloyd Wright

Dragging the boss into 2011

Educators can’t do it alone

OUR

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Question of the week:

Vote online:Do you own a smartphone device?

maplevalleyreporter.comcovingtonreporter.com

Last week’s poll results:

Do you believe school cafeteria food is healthy?

Yes: 23% No: 76%

You said it!

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COVINGTON | MAPLE VALLEY | BLACK DIAMONDREPORTER

[ more TATE page 7 ]

COM

MEN

TARY

Mel

vin

Tate

The harsh reality of money shortages and parks

The Covington City Council invited the public to com-ment on a proposal to increase the utility tax, to help pay for a new park. Naturally, I was interested, since I had invested time and effort several years ago gathering sig-

natures to oppose the imposition of this taxer the second time.

Sadly, some of the people sitting on this council found a way to impose this tax on us anyway. Now, they have the audacity to propose raising this tax. Unfortunately for them, one member of the council, Mark Lanza, provided the public with information about costs and revenue forecasts, which made it clear that this proposal would be completely inadequate to pay for this wonderful new park, or the upkeep and that Covington would be falling deeper and deeper into debt over the next several years. When it was my turn to speak, I reminded these people that we are in a world wide recession. We are still waiting for Coving-ton to finish and fully reopen Jenkins Creek Park. I asked them to be responsible and put this grand new park on the back-burner for a time in the future when the economy

might permit going ahead, and other speakers urged them to recognize the importance of constructing numerous road extension and widening projects (think, Kent-Kangley on weekends).

Predictably, park supporters seemed oblivious to the harsh reality of all this pesky money-shortage talk and trot-ted out their soccer-playing kids to breathlessly implore the council to build this park, because of the desperate need for soccer fields. I took notice this weekend of all the empty, unused soccer fields at various schools throughout Coving-ton and understood what the word delusion really means.

Peter M. HawleyCovington

[7]December 2 , 2011

existence what students had to learn in school was basic reading writing and arithmetic, and there were far fewer distractions.

However, the universe of what students now need to learn and the phenomenal number of distractions, have become so numerous and so competitive that educators can’t do it alone any more.

Under the current systems educators can’t pre-pare students for the 21st century without a great deal of support from families and community.

Reformers point the finger at educators to find a new way.

And, we talk about the success of charter schools.

Even some charter school successes can be attributed to siphoning from poor white communities and communities of color some of the most highly moti-vated families and the most highly motivated students.

A number of charter schools also require a cer-tain level of family involve-ment as well. Parents sign

documents indicating a level of commitment.

Failure of the parent to support the student’s academic work at home, or if a student has discipline problems in some charter schools, that student can land back in the regular public school.

A basic responsibility of the families in any school is to be sure the student shows up for school, and to be sure the student comes to school with a mindset that is prepared to learn.

FAMILIES AND COMMUNITIES MUST HELP

For many years the research has existed indi-cating what families do at home is the strongest indi-cator of how well a student will perform in school.

As an example, if a student is assigned two hours of homework each night to learn things and practice things that the teacher doesn’t have time for in class, the family has a responsibility to make sure the student completes that

work. Family members can’t be

expected to know every-thing in the book, but they should be able to provide a space and time for students to do the work, and make sure the student does the work.

However, if the parent can’t be expected to know the subject matter then who will be available evenings to answer the questions the student has about the homework?

On average students are in classrooms only about 6 hours a day.

The other 18 hours are spent outside of school; that is, in activities, in the fam-ily, and in the community.

Let’s give the average stu-dent eight hours of sleep.

There are 10 hours left in that 24 hour period. The re-search shows that black and brown students spend up to 4 hours a day watching TV. Now you have 6 hours left in the day. Where are the children during that 6 hours? And, what are they doing on school nights? Better still, what are the parents doing?

Research also show

that some white and Asian students use more of their time outside of school for studying, and much less of their time watching TV than black and brown students in general.

Obviously the studious discipline of some white and Asian students is con-tributing to the causes of the achievement gap. What kinds of inferences could one draw from these facts?

And, why isn’t more reform efforts focused on these facts?

Is it much easier to attack the system than to help families support students and inspire students? Should families, students, and communities also be held accountable for stu-dent learning during that 18 hours students are not in school?

It is certainly fair to hold educators accountable, but until individual students, families, and communities assume their responsibil-ity for education it is likely the achievement gap will generally continue to exist between those who do as-sume the responsibility and those who don’t

Any family who doesn’t know what to do at home can be perceived as a victim of the system, but there is help.

Are any of the advo-cates and reformers in the neighborhood who attack the education system actu-ally coming around to show the victims what they can do at home to help improve student performance in school?

One reason this discus-sion is important is because for each student who performs poorly on third grade reading tests, some states set aside money for a jail cell with that student’s number on it about 12 years later.

A jail cell is also pre-pared for those who don’t graduate. The problem also affects society in general because it costs more to house people in jail than it does to educate them. Black and brown students are already overrepresented in the prison populations.

If there is no one in the

community to help, then call the teacher or the prin-cipal and ask for help learn-ing what to do at home to help your student perform better in school.

Don’t be shy; a child’s future doesn’t depend on a parent knowing everything. The education system is there to teach much of what parents don’t know. However, a child’s future may depend on a parent asking for help when they don’t know what to do. Attendance is one of the problems in many schools. Parents can begin by mak-ing sure the student is at school every school day, and make sure the student arrives at school with an attitude that is prepared to learn.

Melvin Tate is a retired Kent School District teacher and assistant principal.

[TATE from page 6]

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COPDCOPD, the acronym for chronic obstructive pulmonary

disease, is a chronic lung disease that often makes it diffi-cult for sufferers to breathe. X-rays and breathing tests can help determine if a person has COPD. The disease, which is actually a combination of two diseases, chronic bronchitis and emphysema, is most often a direct result of smoking. Smoking destroys the lungs and leads to COPD by irritating the airways and destroying the fibers in the lungs that al-low them to stretch. Other causes of the disease include pol-lution and chemical fumes. The symptoms of COPD are a chronic cough that produces mucous and shortness of breath that tends to worsen during exercise. Symptoms of COPD can flare up at any time and can be life-threatening.

Most experts advocate the early detection of COPD and active intervention to stop smoking. Medications also can be used to relieve symptoms of COPD, particularly shortness of breath, and to treat respiratory tract infections that can worsen COPD.

For an appointment with Southlake Clinic, please call (253) 395-1972. We are a multi-specialty medical group with a clinic at 27005 168th Place SE in Covington. We are also open on Saturdays.

● L E T T E R SY O U R O P I N I O N C O U N T S : E-MAIL: [email protected]. MAIL: Letters, Covington/Maple Valley Reporter, 22035 SE. Wax Road Maple Valley, WA. 98038

FAX: 425-432-1888

December 2, 2011[8]

The first week of De-cember is the time to start humming a certain carol, make like the Victorians and deck the halls with boughs of holly. But don’t forget about the cedar, fir, nandina and camellia greens. Here in western Washington we have the glorious greens to celebrate the season with less money and more tradi-tion – and at the same time accomplish some serious winter pruning.

Decorating with garden greens means you won’t raise your power bill. A lack of funds shouldn’t mean a lack of fun for the holidays. If you have a garden or someone that will let you prune their garden, then you have all the makings for a festive, beautifully-decorated home, thanks to the evergreens that thrive in our climate.

When pruning any plant this winter follow a branch

to a joint, use sharp tools and cut close to the main branch so you don’t leave a protrud-ing stump or

Pinocchio nose.Greens for a Victorian

Christmas: Holly and bling make the house sing!

Start pruning your holly plants because we all know what Charles Dickens saw in merry old England dur-ing the Christmas season – halls were decked with holly for good reason, not only do the glossy leaves of holly last indoors for days and outdoors for months, but holly loves to be pruned in the winter. Stick some sprigs of holly into a vase and you’ll have great foliage and red berries that will stay fresh for up to a month.

December is a great month to prune all types of holly shrubs including Osmanthus or false holly and the stiff green branches of Helleri or Japanese holly.

The cold weather has put these evergreen plants into dormancy so when you make the cuts the plants won’t feel a thing.

Add some Christmas bling to your holly bowl or holly garland and you’ll really be channeling Queen Victoria. If you’re short on silver punch bowls to fill with holly or don’t have a set of silver candlesticks to add to a mantel of holly just substitute shiny silver or gold ornaments or a gar-land of old-fashioned tinsel from the thrift store.

Greens for a Country Christmas: Cedar, twine and burlap for simple pleasures.

Our evergreen state is full of western red cedar and this is the easiest-to-use evergreen for holiday decorating. Cedar is the tree with flat, scale-like greens rather than prickly needles. The branches cut from cedar trees are easy to turn into swags that can gracefully bedeck all your outdoor spaces. Use cut cedar tips poked in winter

floral arrangements and any floral bouquet will look like Christmas.

Next, to really give your cedar greens a country Christmas look use burlap (yes, burlap) to wrap the base of potted plants or even your gifts. Burlap is the newest fabric to hit the interior decorating world and rustic rope, garden twine and bright red yard wrapped around burlap packages or wrapped pots will fit in with the down-home, back-to-basics look of a country Christmas. Mix in plants with bright berries or add recycled ornaments for more color. Cedar smells great and plays well with others. You can even cut the fronts off of Christmas cards, punch a hole, add a yarn loop and then recycle the cards and a bit of cedar as ornaments or gift tags.

Greens go modern: Mix foliage colors for a contem-porary vibe

If you’re serious about winter pruning than get out the wheelbarrow and

loppers and start collect-ing a diverse mix of greens, branches, berries and sticks from the garden. You won’t hurt the mahonia, rhodo-dendrons, pieris japonica, camellias, nandina or mag-nolias by trimming them now and you’ll end up with a barrow full of greens for some creative decorating.

Try adding a mix of cut greens to the base of your porch pots or poke your pruning crumbs into left over hanging baskets and window boxes. Make a mixed garland of greens by stapling cut segments of evergreens to a length of rope or twine. Then don’t be afraid to “stick it,” using branches.

Adding bare branches or sticks to your gather-ing of winter greens gives any arrangement a more contemporary vibe. You can go white by spraying your sticks with artificial snow or go wild by spraying the twisted branches of con-torted filbert, willow or rob-binia with bright red, green or even deep purple spray

paint. Eggplant purple is the new black when it comes to modern twists on holiday colors. Pair purple with pink, lime green or gray ribbon and nobody will accuse your decorating of being traditional.

Marianne Binetti has a degree in horticulture from Washington State University and is the author of “Easy Answers for Great Gardens” and several other books. For book requests or answers to gardening questions, write to her at: P.O. Box 872, Enumclaw, 98022.

Send a self-addressed, stamped envelope for a personal reply.For more gardening information, she can be reached at her Web site, www.binettigarden.com.

Copyright for this col-umn owned by Marianne Binetti.

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KING COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE TO CLOSE ITS MAPLE VALLEY PRECINCT DEC. 5

The King County Sheriff’s Precinct in Maple Valley will close its doors on Monday, Dec. 5.

The closure is part of an effort by the Sheriff’s Office to save money and move deputies closer to the citizens and com-munities they serve. It is estimated the precinct closures will save more than $8 million during the next 20 years.

A handful of officers who work out of the Maple Valley precinct now will move into a satellite office located in Covington City which is expected to be open by Jan. 1.

Services that have traditionally been provided to the public at the precincts such as concealed pistol licenses (CPL) and fingerprinting will be temporarily available at other loca-tions until the moves are complete.

The Burien and SeaTac Precincts will provide fingerprinting and concealed pistol licenses for individuals who would normally have gone to the Maple Valley precinct. An ap-pointment first.

The SeaTac Police Station is located at 4800 S. 188th St. You can make an appointment by calling 206-973-4900.

The Burien Police Station is located at 14905 6th Ave. SW. You can make an appointment by calling (206) 296-3333.

The downtown Sheriff’s Office located at the King County Courthouse also provides fingerprinting and concealed pistol licenses on a walk in basis.

The office is in Suite 150, located on the first floor of the courthouse.

For information call (206) 296-4155 or visit the Sheriff’s Office website at: http://www.kingcounty.gov/safety/sheriff.aspx

KENTRIDGE STUDENT PLACES SIXTH AT SEATTLE MARATHON NOV. 27

Kentridge Senior Talon Abernathy placed 6th overall out of more than 1,300 runners at the Seattle Marathon Nov. 27.

The 17-year-old also placed first in his age group.

Abernathy is a running start student at Green River Com-munity College.

Community Notes

more photos online... covingtonreporter.com | maplevalleyreporter.com

BY DENNIS TOMPKINS

For The Reporter

Yes, it is a bit early to begin to think about Christmas. Th e pumpkin season just ended and Th anks-giving just passed us by.

But America’s Christmas tree farm-ers are just beginning to get warmed up. Th ey produce a true “real green” prod-uct that will create jobs, is grown in the U.S.A. and is recyclable.

Puget Sound Christmas tree farmers and local retail lots off er a wide variety of species. To help select your favorite tree, the character-istics of the more popular species are listed below.

is generally available as a sheared tree and is the most common species found on tree lots. It has a nice fragrance and a medium-to-good shelf life. Because of the thick, bushy crowns, they do not lend themselves to large or heavy decora-

tions.Th is species is the

easiest to grow because it is relatively problem free. It requires seven to eight years to mature as a Christmas tree.

is considered the “Cadil-lac” of Christmas trees. It grows in a more open pattern, has stout branches, luxurious green needles, a long shelf life and has a nice fragrance. It is popular with families that have large or heavy ornaments.

It is usually the most expensive tree because it takes eight to ten years to mature and is more diffi cult to grow than other species.

tree is the most fragrant of the native species. It has an attractive needle that makes it a popular choice as a fl ocked tree.

eight to nine years to grow and have a medium shelf life.

Carolina native has fairly strong branches that will hold heavier ornaments. Th e needles have a pleasant fragrance. It also has a long

shelf life that is comparable

to grow because of the many pests that constantly threaten them.

Th ey require eight to 10 years before they are ready for harvest.NORWAY AND BLUE SPRUCE TREES

Th ese are generally avail-able only at choose-and-cut farms.

Th ey are sheared and will hold heavy decorations. Some consumers think they are “child and pet proof ” because of the stiff , prickly needles.

Spruces require eight to nine years to mature as Christmas trees and have a medium shelf life.

To enjoy a fun experi-ence with the family, visit a local choose and cut farm. Locations can be obtained from the Puget Sound

website, www.pscta.com. In addition, many nurseries, stores and charity groups off er trees at retail lots.

PROPER TREE CAREOnce home, cut one-

quarter inch off the butt

and place the tree in a water stand. Th e stand should large enough to hold at least one gallon of water aft er the tree is placed in it. Check the water level daily. A typical six-foot tall tree can drink one gallon of water each day and remain fresh for two to three weeks.

DO TREES REALLY COST SO MUCH?

A tree farmer invests many dollars and hard work for six to ten years before earning any return.

Some trees will die while others will be damaged by insects, diseases or other natural occurrences before they reach harvest size.

trees planted, 900 to 950

However, only 700 to 800 nobles may be marketable because of losses to the above factors. Th erefore, a grower needs to receive more money for nobles

One interesting way to view prices is to look at how much a tree costs and how long it can be enjoyed by a

family compared to other regular activities.

for a noble, they will bring joy and good smells to your home for two to four weeks. If you spend $30 to feed a family of four at a fast food establishment or

eat popcorn, the enjoyment may last from one to four hours.

When viewed in that per-spective, trees seem to be a pretty good bargain for the time that they bring enjoy-ment to millions of families.

Dennis Tompkins is a Cer-tifi ed Arborist and Hazard Tree Risk Assessor from the Bonney Lake-Sumner area. He is also a nation-ally recognized expert and consultant to the Christ-mas tree industry. Contact him at 253 863-7469 or email at [email protected]. Website: evergreenar-borist.com.

[9]December 2 , 2011

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MAPLE VALLEY SEEKS LIBRARY ADVISORY BOARD VOLUNTEER

The city of Maple Valley is currently recruiting applicants for appoint-ment to serve on the city’s Library Advisory Board.

Applications will be received through Dec. 23.

The appointed members will serve for a three-year period starting in January 2012.

Applicants must be residents of Maple Valley.

Those who are interested can visit City Hall at 22017 SE Wax Road, Suite 200, or the Maple Valley Library at 21844 SE 248th Street and fi ll out an application or download the ap-plication at the city’s website www.maplevalleywa.gov.

The board serves as an advisory capacity to the City Council and coor-dinates with the Board of Trustees of the King County Library System.

Board activities include making recommendations for the library services and proposed facilities, attending and providing input dur-ing the King County Library System annual budget hearings.

Community Notes

Read us online 24/7 with regular updates

BY TJ MARTINELL

[email protected]

New Life Church gave 300 single moms a little something to be thankful for on Nov. 23 — $20 worth of gas.

“People are trying to see their families and paying for it can be hard,” said Brandi Dorsett, pastor of New Life’s Maple Valley-Covington Campus. “We

thought, ‘What a great idea.’ An extra $20 goes a long way to a single mom. It’s letting them know we care in the community. It’s kind of hard on the holidays (not to have enough gas).”

From 2-5 p.m. the day before Thanksgiving volunteers from the church stood next to the Safeway gas station at Four Corners in Maple Valley and helped

single mothers fill up their gas while cleaning their windows.

The idea came after the church held a food drive for the Renton and Maple Val-ley Food Banks. In addition to donating 25,000 pounds of food, they received mon-etary donations from the community.

According to Troy Jones, the head pastor of New Life

Church, they felt the only proper thing to do with the money was to give it back to others who did not have enough.

“We want to be a group that is serving the com-munity,” Jones said. “Jesus washed his disciples’ feet. How can we be that to the world? Put some gas in their cars. We’ve been focusing on living a life of compassion. It’s been a focus of our church for the

last season.”For some single mothers,

it was the only way they could afford to drive to see relatives, according to Jones.

“I’ve had single moms coming up to me in tears,” he said.

Through their partner-ship with Vine Maple Place, the church was able to have them alert single mothers of the event.

“They have been an

amazing nonprofit,” Jones said. “It’s a great part-nership. They have the resources. We have the manpower.”

New Life Church is located at 27405 216th Ave. SE Maple Valley.

Reach TJ Martinell at 425-432-1209 ext. 5052.To comment on this story go to maplevalleyreporter.com

Church helps single mothers get home for holidayDecember 2, 2011[10]

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Although many stores in Covington began their Black Friday sales Nov. 25, the line between it and Thanksgiving blurred for many people.

By the time Brianna Baines waited outside of Big Lots before it opened at 6 a.m., she and her friend had already done a night’s worth of shopping at other stores, such as Toys R Us.

“We’ve done too much shopping,” said Baines, who began shopping at 8:30 p.m.

on Thanksgiving. “We’ve been up all night.”

Baines and her friend went to Big Lots in order to purchase a kids workbench. Fred Meyer, which opened its doors at 5 a.m., saw roughly 150 people lined up outside of its doors, and by 6:30 a.m. the entire parking lot was full. For shoppers like Gretchen Dolan and her husband, it was their first time experiencing the Black Friday early morning rush. Normally, they sleep in after Thanksgiving, but this year they decided to try some-

thing different. After shop-ping at Fred Meyer, Gretchen Dolan drove over to Big Lots at 5:30 a.m. to become the first person in line.

Although she said she’s naturally an early morning person, it was hard to get out of bed. Only after they made their first string of purchases, she said, did they feel like the trouble was worth it.

“That made it worth it,” she said. “We got four peoples’ gifts done.”

Coffee shops such as Starbucks, which opened at midnight, saw a large influx of business before people proceeded to stand in line outside of the stores.

“Half the people had coffee in their hands,” Dolan said.

Baines stated, “(It was) a good thing Starbucks starts at 12.”

Black Friday starts early in Covington

[11]December 2 , 2011

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DRIVE THROUGH CONVENIENCE WITH RESERVATION PRICING

(Price eff ective 12-1-11.)

December 2, 2011[12]

This page produced and paid for by City of Covington

A community newsletter produced by the City of Covington for residents and businesses.

December 2011 City of Covington: Unmatched Quality of Life16720 SE 271st Street, Suite 100, Covington, WA 98042

Tel: 253.638.1110 Fax: 253.638.1122 Website: www.ci.covington.wa.us

Mayor Margaret Harto

Mayor Pro TemJeff Wagner

Council MembersMark Lanza, David Lucavish, Marlla Mhoon, James A. Scott,

Wayne Snoey

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The fi rst weekend of December is Hollydaze weekend!The Covington Kiwanis coordinate various festive events to help get residents in the holiday spirit and it all culminates with the annual City of Covington Tree Lighting Event.

Friday, December 2Float-in Movie - 7-9 p.m.Rudolph, Frosty, Santa, and more team up for this holiday fi lm

extravaganza! – Float or swim, enjoy the fi lms, and compete in fun games and activities for holiday prizes! This event is provided by the Covington Parks and Recreation Department and is located at the Covington Aquatic Center at 18230 SE 240th St.

Costs: Early registration is available through 12/1 at a promotional rate of $3.25 General Fee or $2.50 Covington Resident Fee; or pay at the door for $4.25 General Fee and $3.50 Covington Resident Fee. These events tend to sell out, so get your tickets early! Call (425) 423-POOL (7665).

Saturday, December 3Pancake Breakfast - 8-11 a.m.Join other community members at the annual Pancake Breakfast at St. John the

Baptist Church at 25810 156th Ave SE in Covington.

Hollydaze Craft Bazaar - 9 a.m.-4 p.m.Give something unique and handmade for gifts this year! Visit the

Hollydaze Bazaar at the Covington MultiCare Clinic for great gift ideas.Last year there were 50 vendors! Plus, grab a bite to eat while you are thereto support the Covington Lions Club.

Fruitcake Hurl - Noon-3 p.m.Who really likes fruitcake anyway? Don’t miss this fun competition where

contestants hurl “fruitcake” as far as they can with the giant slingshot. Each contestant can purchase three hurls for $5. Kids AND adults are welcome! Prizes are provided by Red Robin. Located in the Covington Home Depot parking lot.

Gift of Life Blood Drive - Noon-3 p.m.Cascade Regional Blood Services is bringing the bloodmobile to the Home Depot

parking lot. Hurl a fruitcake, then give some blood!

Community Tree Lighting Event - 5 p.m.Gather in the Fred Meyer parking lot right out front of the Los Cabos

Restaurant for the perfect view of the Covington Community Tree. Local high school choir students will lead a caroling session and Covington’s Mayor will fl ip the switch. Free song books from the Covington Chamber of Commerce and hot cocoa will be available! Lighting of the City of Covington’s Community Tree is provided by the Covington Parks and Recreation Department.

CITIZEN LEADERSEach year, 40 community-minded and passionate individuals serve

on the City’s commissions. Our commissioners provide valuable leadership to the City through their active participation on the Covington Economic Development Council and the Arts, Human Services, Parks and Recreation, and Planning Commissions.

Now is your chance to join this group of concerned and dedicated citizens who play a signifi cant role in city government. Of the City’s fi ve commissions, there are currently three openings on the Parks and Recreation Commission for citizens who want to be advocates, proactive participants, and leaders in the growth of Covington’s Parks and Recreation system.

Commission members participate in advisory, advocacy, and planning activities related to parks and recreation. Meetings are held on the third Wednesday of each month at 6 p.m. and members are also expected to attend other events such as occasional council meetings and participate in identifi ed volunteer and community events.

Applicants can include youth as well as adults who live in or within three miles of the city. City Council expects to conduct interviews on Tuesday, January 10 at 6 p.m. prior to the regular city council meeting.

To be included in the upcoming selection process, please complete a City Commission Application available on the city’s website at www.covingtonwa.gov or at Covington City Hall, 16720 SE 271st St. Applications are due by 5 p.m. on Monday, December 19 and should be directed to Deputy City Clerk Joan Michaud in person, by mail or to [email protected]

COVINGTON HOLLYDAZEAND COMMUNITY TREE

LIGHTING

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12/02 – Hollydaze Float-in Movie, 7 p.m.12/03 – Community Tree Lighting Event, 5 p.m.12/08 – Human Services Commission Meeting, 6:30 p.m.12/08 – Arts Commission Meeting, 6:30 p.m.12/13 – City Council Regular Meeting, 7 p.m.12/15 – Planning Commission Meeting, 6:30 p.m.12/25 – Christmas Day12/26 – Holiday Observed – City Hall Closed

For More Information on Any of These Events, Please Contact Karla Slate at (253) 638-1110 x2234

or [email protected]

DECEMBERCALENDAROF EVENTS

[13]December 2 , 2011

City of Covington UPDATEDecember 2011

This page produced and paid for by City of Covington54

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COVINGTON AQUATIC CENTER NEWS-SPLASH

GIVE THE GIFT OF SWIMMINGGift certifi cates are available at the Covington Aquatic Center. These make

great gifts and can be used for everything from swimming lessons to birthday party rentals, to public swim 10-visit cards and much, much more. For more information, or to purchase gift certifi cates, contact the Covington Aquatic Center.

CHOOSE SWIMMING AS YOUR NEW YEARS RESOLUTION! Maybe you are an avid swimmer already, or maybe it’s been 10 years since

you swam your last stroke – either way, choose swimming to be your 2012 New Year’s Resolution. Lap swims are available periodically throughout the week to accommodate your schedule (check the current pool schedule for current lap swim times). Drop-in rates, 10-visit discount cards, and unlimited use memberships are all available for lap swims.

FOR MORE INFORMATIONFor more information about the Covington Aquatic Center and programs

offered visit www.covingtonwa.gov/cac, call 425-413-POOL(7665), or visit us at 18230 SE 240th St, Covington WA 98042 (Next to Tahoma High School).

PUBLIC WORKS 101TECHNOLOGY

Technological innovations have changed the way that businesses function and the City is no exception. From phones to mobile GPS units, technology is changing and improving the way our city government functions. Technology has an important role in our daily operations and by reviewing and integrating the best available options the City continues to become more effi cient. Here is a look at some of the technology the City has chosen to invest in to increase our effi ciency:

COMMUNICATIONSThe ability to communicate quickly and

effi ciently reduces ineffi ciency and delays caused by information not being received in a timely manner. This year one major project to improve communication was the upgrade of the City’s email system to Exchange 2010. In addition to many other improvements, the newer version allows for better support for Smart phones and a signifi cantly improved web based access to email. This allows staff to remain in much better contact and respond to email quickly, even when on the go or away from the offi ce. In addition, staff has been going through the process to reach a recommendation for a new phone system. The existing system is extremely antiquated and lacks many features that would be considered basic by today’s standards such as direct dial extensions, caller ID, and the ability to transfer calls to other city-owned facilities. These capabilities, as well as the many other enhancements a new phone system brings, will allow for signifi cant streamlining of our phone communications which leads to quicker access to staff and more effi cient communication in general.

GISThe term “GIS” has become more frequently used over the past few years.

The acronym means Geographic Information System, but what is that exactly? Maps are generally the fi rst thoughts that come to mind, which is accurate, but the technology does much more than create maps. GIS is a data management tool and helps the City more effi ciently manages its assets. Currently, we are tracking assets such as catch basins, streetlights, city-owned properties, and many more. Along with the geographic position, relevant information is stored with each asset, for example, a unique identifi er used for tracking, owner information, and other useful details. In addition to the ability to track

assets it can also be used to display data, for example, trail locations in parks, defi ned maintenance need areas, display property information and much more. Each group of related assets is referred to as a “layer” and can be displayed on a map in the software. This data can be queried and analyzed based on

its location in space, proximity to other assets, or its defi ning properties.

The key to effi ciency begins with organization. Using GIS is helping us organize the City’s data so that it can be displayed visually on a map that is relevant to the needs of our staff. Our own staff createsand manages the data directly without third parties involved; this ensures data quality/ integrity, quality map generation and quick mapping service needs to other departments within the City. Our GIS is growing everyday and the data continues to be refi ned and collected.

Now that we have all of this geographic information, what are we going to do with it? The City has been

working closely with King County to develop a Covington-specifi c online map through King County’s iMap service. The Covington specifi c map is now available online through our website and through the County’s iMap page. The Covington map includes both the County’s GIS data as well as much of the City’s GIS data and is available for the public to view. We are currently working on making many other layers available on this service and will continue updating these layers often as well as adding new layers as they are created by our staff. More information can be found about iMap on our website at www.covingtonwa.gov.

ASSET MANAGEMENT/ MOBILE TECHNOLOGYDeveloping geographic information is the backbone for effectively and

effi ciently managing our assets while we are working in the fi eld. Because of this, Public Works has been researching map-based asset management systems that could pull the information directly from our GIS data that our fi eld crews need, without shuffl ing paperwork. Combined with internet enabled tablets, this would give our fi eld crews the ability to access work order and asset information without returning to the offi ce, allowing them to get more fi eld work done in a day. The end goal of this project is more work done in a more effi cient manner and better information being kept on the City’s assets.

The City strives to be the best it can be for its citizens and technology is an important part of being the best. As long as we continue to research and implement innovative technologies we will continue to increase our ability to serve the community in more effi cient ways!

COMP PLAN AMENDMENT UPDATE

COVINGTON’S 2012 ANNUAL COMPREHENSIVE PLAN AMENDMENT PROCESS

Covington’s Comprehensive Plan translates community values and vision into the framework for guiding decisions on the nature and intensity of development in the City.

The Washington State Growth Management Act limits the City to amending the Comprehensive Plan only once a year. Amendments must be reviewed concurrently to ensure the cumulative effect of the proposed amendments are considered within a citywide context and are available for review by the public.

Proposed amendments usually address changing conditions or emerging issues and may included changes to policies or the future land use map. Anyone can suggest an amendment, including neighbors, business owners, council members and City staff. Proposed amendments to the City’s Comprehensive Plan are carefully reviewed each year by City staff, the Planning Commission and City Council.

If you are interest in more information, a 2012 Comprehensive Plan Amendment Guide, Timeline and Application can be found on the City’s website or a hardcopy can be picked up at City Hall.

The City will begin accepting amendment applications on December 15, 2011. To be eligible for consideration, applications for proposed amendments must be submitted by 5 p.m. on February 13, 2012.

December 2, 2011[14]

548120

HOLIDAYRemembranceProgram

Are you struggling with grief over the loss

of someone loved this Holiday Season?

Please join us in the ceremony to carry on thememories of those who have been a part of your life.

Marlatt Funeral Home713 Central Ave. N., Kent, WA

Thursday, December 15, 2011 7:00 pm

RSVP’s are not required, but please call us at

253.852.2620 if you have any questions.

We hope you and your friends and family will join us.

If you wish to participate in a photo tribute,

please bring in a picture by December 10.

Saturday, December 3rd10:00-4:00 p.m.

Shopping - Homemade CraftsLocal Vendors

Bake Sale & Free Coffee - Door PrizesBring your friends!

Get some Christmas shopping done early!

26902 169th Pl SECovington, WA(253) 398-2700

www.villageconcepts.comAffordable Living for Independent Seniors546861

CRIME

ALERTThis week’s…Police Blotter

COVINGTON

Nov. 27

BAH HUMBUG: 16100 block of Southeast 264th Place. Someone stole a Christmas wreath from the victim’s front door. The victim’s yard was not fenced, according to the police report.

Nov. 17

POT PIPES: 25800 block of 164th

Avenue Southeast. While two teen-agers were standing near a car one of them owns, a Kent School District security officer observed two glass marijuana pipes in the pocket of the car door. They were seized and submitted for disposal.

NOT JUST A DOG DOOR: 25100 block of 170th Place Southeast. Someone forced entry into the home through a dog door and stole electronics from inside.

EXPERIMENTING: 26500 block of 168th Place Southeast. A 13-year-old boy who attends Mattson Middle School purchased marijuana from a classmate. After smoking it,

the boy “felt funny,” according to the police report and called his parents.

Nov. 16

GOT PILLS?: 19400 block of Southeast 267th Street. A woman reported someone stole morphine pills from her unlocked car.

Nov. 15

BREAK-INS: 27200 block of Cov-ington Way. Someone broke into five trailers at the Airstream dealer-ship and attempted to break into five more.

NOT PRODIGAL SON: 19400 block of Southeast 266th Street. A woman accused her son of stealing

a televisions, DVD player and stereo speakers from her home.

MAPLE VALLEY

Nov. 27

PARENTING DISAGREEMENT: 24800 block of 234th Place South-east. A father refused to return his 16-year-old son to the boy’s mother, who has full custody.

Nov. 21

ON ALL FOURS: 22400 block of Southeast 231st Street. A burglar broke into a pet-oriented business by crawling through a doggie door. Rooms inside the business were rummaged through but nothing

was missing.

BURGLARY: 23100 block of 224th Place Southeast. Someone appar-ently used a brick, which was found nearby, to break into a gymnastics studio. It appeared that the brick was used to break off a doorknob to get inside the business.

BACK IN A FEW HOURS: 22300 block of Southeast 244th Place. While the homeowners were gone for a few hours, someone entered the house through an unlocked rear laundry room window, and took items from the home.

Nov. 19

TRESPASSED: 21600 Southeast

272nd Street. A patron of Pla-Mor Tavern was trespassed after re-peated harassment of employees and customers.

According to the police report, the person “admitted to being bi-polar and an alcoholic.”

THIRSTY: 22100 block of Southeast 237th Street. The suspect put two cans of beer in his jacket and left QFC without paying for them.

Nov. 16

TEXT THREATS: 21800 block of Southeast 239th Street. The victim was receiving threats via text message from unknown phone numbers.

MAPLE VALLEY ARTISTS TO PERFORM DEC. 8

Artists from the area will be per-forming “An Evening of Dance, Po-etry and Song” 7:30 p.m. Dec. 8 - 9 at the Maple Valley Creative Arts Center. The show consists of all original

works by local artists. Each act will present dance, poetry and song and touch on three major themes, war, love and life. Performances are a benefit for the Maple Valley Creative Arts Council.

To buy tickets go to www.mapleval-leyarts.com.

Community Notes

[15]December 2 , 2011

Tahoma’s returning wrestlers show off their hardware from previous trips to Mat Classic, the state wrestling tournament, as well as individual honors from both high school and year-round wrestling away from Tahoma High. Photo courtesy of Boomer Burnham

BY KRIS HILL

[email protected]

Tahoma is stacked.Th e Bears wrestling team has 12 com-

petitors who were on the fl oor of the Tacoma Dome in February for Mat Classic XXIII, the state championship tournament.

Among them is Steven Hopkins, who won the 103 pound weight class as a sophomore two years ago, and Joey Palmer who won the 125 pound class as a junior last year at Rogers High in Puyallup.

Both seniors think Tahoma has a shot at the

4A state title given the amount of experience — both on the high school mat and in other programs — the team brings back this season.

“Our whole varsity could be at state,” Hopkins said. “It’s not just our varsity that’s good… our second string is good. We have a lot of experi-ence.”

Palmer stated, “We have the potential to win state.”

He explained that head coach Chris Feist’s Bear Claw and Wolf Pack programs for elemen-tary and middle school aged wrestlers instills the fundamentals needed to succeed later as well as the work ethic.

Hopkins noted that wrestling for Feist for so long has also created a bond with the coach.

So, by the time a wrestler gets to the high school, they know Feist and they know more than just basics of shooting and take downs, how to fi nd their base and escape from an opponent.

And that’s a tremendous advantage, Palmer said, because they walk into the wrestling room and “we do a lot of hard drilling.”

“I feel like we’re always ready,” Hopkins said. “We have to train. We can’t expect to be ready.”

And even though Tahoma hasn’t lost a South Puget Sound League North dual meet in more

DAUNTING DOZEN Tahoma has an eye on a title and 12 state returners to help make it happen

[ more DOZEN page 17 ]

VOLLEYBALL ALL-LEAGUE HONORS

South Puget Sound League North All-League Volleyball selections included a

number of Tahoma and Kent school district athletes.

Kentwood, which fi nished second in state, earned a number of honors including senior setter Kacie Seims

named MVP while her mother Cindy Seims was tapped with Coach of the Year honors in her fi rst season at the

helm.Kentwood: Libero Tess Manthou, First

Team; outside hitter Mikaela Ballou, First Team; outside hitter Lauren

Hackett, First Team; middle hitter Sarah Toeaina, Second Team; outside hitter Mele Halahuni, Honorable Mention.

Kentridge: Outside hitter Allison Chin, Second Team; outside hitter Erin Sullivan, Honorable Mention; middle

hitter Lexi Nguyen, Honorable Mention; setter Jordan Denny, Honorable

Mention.Kentlake: Outside hitter Natalie

Berube, Honorable Mention.Tahoma: Setter Miranda Grieser, First

Team; outside hitter Rachelle Frets, First Team; libero Amber Thompson,

Honorable Mention; outside hitter Megan Smith,

Honorable Mention.

SPORTS

CO

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Football players from Tahoma and Kent schools received a number of honors in the South Puget Sound League North All-League awards selected by coaches.

Tahoma’s Jason Smith, a 6-1 senior, earned Special Teams Player of the Year.

Kile Minnis of Kentlake, listed at 6-1 and 272 pounds, was named Co-Offensive Lineman of the year.

Kentlake’s Austin Pernell was named Defensive Back of the Year while teammate Tanner Lucas was tapped for Defensive Lineman of the Year.

Kentridge standout Caleb Smith, a 6-foot-6, 245 pound tight end who will play at Oregon State next year was named All Purpose Player of the Year.

Falcons head coach Chris Paulson shared Head Coach of the Year honors with Dean Peck of Thomas Jefferson, which earned its first playoff berth in school history this fall, while Jay Freeman of Kentlake was named Co-Assistant Coach of the Year.

Other honors by school (Special Teams, Offense, Defense):

Kentlake: Mitchell Habryle, kicker,

Second Team; Ryan Archibald, punt-er, First Team, wide receiver and defensive back, Honorable Men-tion; Breton Medina, holder, First Team; Tanner Lucas, running back and linebacker, First Team; Austin Pernell, wide receiver and defensive back, First Team; Kile Minnis, of-fensive line, First Team, defensive line, Second Team; Steffin Church, quarterback, Second Team; Mason Johnson, offensive line, Honorable Mention; Caleb Saulo, linebacker, First Team; Conner Powell, defensive line, First Team; Nu’u Vaifale, line-backer, Honorable Mention.

Kentwood: Mitchell Cox, kicker,

Honorable Mention; Bryan Mills, deep snapper, First Team; Matt Hubbard, running back, First Team; Quincey Davidson, offensive line, First Team; Jonathan Ohashi, defensive back, First Team, wide receiver, Second Team; Matt Herrick, defensive line, First Team, offensive line, Second Team; Visa Thach, linebacker, First Team; Chase Kalu-Fuiamono, linebacker, Second Team; Jackson Huerta, defensive back, Honorable Mention; Ryan Dozier, linebacker, Honorable Mention.

Kentridge: Daniel Allen, punter, Honorable Mention; Jake Zylstra, kick return and cover man, First

Team, linebacker, Second Team; Caleb Smith, tight end, First Team, defensive line, Second Team; Jim-mie Davis, running back, Second Team, defensive back, Honorable Mention; Kaid Tipton, wide receiver and defensive back, Second Team; Terry Areta, offensive line, Second Team; Tyler Bailey, offensive line, Second Team; Reggie Collins, wide receiver, Honorable Mention; An-drew Weitzel, offensive line, Honor-able Mention; Alex McGuire, line-backer, Honorable Mention; Travis McGuire, defensive line, Honorable Mention; Heamasi Vi, defensive line, Honorable Mention.

Tahoma: David Stoecker, kicker, First Team; Barrett Weston, defen-sive line, Second Team, punter and offensive line, Honorable Mention; Beau Riggs, running back, First Team, defensive line, Honorable Mention; Jason Smith, wide receiver and defensive back, First Team; Shane Nelson, quarterback, Second Team; Dallas Hayes, defensive and offensive line, Honorable Mention; Aaron Davis, offensive line, Honor-able Mention; Wil Anderson, line-backer, Honorable Mention.

BY KRIS HILL

[email protected]

Wrestlers in the South Puget Sound League North Divi-sion — with the exception of Tahoma — are pretty young.

Kentlake has just two state returners, for example, both seniors and a gaggle of freshmen while one of Kentwood’s top returner from Mat Classic XXIII is sophomore Dalton Meyers.

Tahoma will likely be above the fray while Kentlake and Kentwood battle with the rest of the division for spots in the post-season. And it looks like it’s going to be a fight from start to finish.

YOUTH CONQUERSJonathan Ohashi, a senior co-captain for Kentwood, rec-

ognizes his role as a leader of a team now without the likes of two-time state champion Ruben Navejas, who graduated in the spring.

“We’re young, really young,” Ohashi said. “All our skilled wrestlers are really young. The majority of our team, they’re athletes. A lot of people are com-ing up new, they play other sports or it’s not their primary sport.”

Meyers, who will wrestle at 126, said the key to this season for the Conquerors is to “work hard.”

Ohashi added that time on the mat makes the difference.“Once you get used to the motion then you can start

learning technique,” he said. “Just a lot of time wrestling.”And as technique improves, Meyers explained, the guys

can push themselves harder. But, it’s still challenging to have a young squad.“We just have a bunch of good freshmen coming up,”

Meyers said. “It’s still pretty early.”A friendly dual meet this week against Rogers, Mey-

ers noted, will give the team an idea as to where its at and where it needs to go.

As for the postseason, well, Ohashi and Meyers both have a positive outlook for themselves as well as the rest of the Conks.

“A fair number (should go to state),” Meyers said. “We

have a lot of upper classsmen that will go far this year.”As a captain, Ohashi said, he needs to make sure his

teammates don’t get worn out by the grind of the season.“The problem you face is working too hard,” he said.

“This year is different. I’m trying to make it more interac-tive by throwing something in at the end of practice to make it more fun.”

While practice may be more fun, Meyers said, league dual meets will challenge Kentwood.

“We have some of the toughest wrestlers in the North division,” he said.

LEADING FALCONSLike Kentwood, the captains of the Kentlake wrestling

team are leading a group of young wrestlers, but Colton Marlowe and Sean Farr believe the program is headed in the right direction.

“We’re looking pretty good, a lot better than we were last year” said Marlowe, who placed sixth at 130 pounds

last year at Mat Classic. “We’re young. There’s only a couple older returners, me and Sean.”

Marlowe said their teammate who is wrestling at 106 pounds this year is solid “and he sure does know what he’s doing.”

“We’ve got a lot of young guys that have potential if they work hard,” Farr said. “We’ve got good coach-

ing, a lot better than we’ve had. We’re a new team this year. We’re going to come out aggressive.”

At this point, Marlowe has his eye on an SPSL North di-vision rival that has some of the best wrestlers in the state.

“I want to wrestle Tahoma,” he said. “That’ll be good.”But there will be other challenges to contend with as

the WIAA has changed the weight classes, something for middle weights such as Marlowe and Farr that will be dif-ficult because they can’t cut weight to wrestle in their ideal class. There’s just not much weight to cut there.

“There’s going to be a lot of good kids in every weight class,” Marlowe said. “It’s going to be stacked.”

Both seniors wrestle at 145 but toward the end of the season Farr may likely go up to 152. They have high expec-tations for themselves on the mat and as leaders.

Marlowe’s top goal is to be in the state championship final at Mat Classic in February.

“When we’re pushing hard and showing a good effort, the freshmen will see that,” he said. “We need to get every-one pumped up.”

Farr said he and Marlowe have to be role models.“We want to make new leaders for the team,” he said.

“We have to train together, push each other and pay atten-tion to the coaches.”

And then there’s the ultimate goal at Mat Classic in a few months.

“I definitely want to place in the top three at state,” Farr said. “I just want to win, go out there and kick some butt.”

December 2, 2011[16]

Kentlake’s Sean Farr wrestles against Kentwood’s Jose Hernandez in last season’s dual meet. CHARLES CORTES, The Reporter

Kentwood and Kentlake youthful on the mat

WRESTLING

PREVIEW

CROSSWORD ANSWERS

Puzzle in Classifieds

Tahoma Lacrosse Club 2012 Boys and Girls Registration Register online now atwww.tahomalax.org or In-Person registration on December 10 at Rock Creek Elem, 10-noon

54

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Request a free information kit:

Expand your campaign marketing coverage by advertising in community newspapers across

the entire state of Washington at a low cost.

425-432-1209

SPSL North All-League football selections

[17]December 2 , 2011

BY KRIS HILL

[email protected]

Another Tahoma baseball product has signed on the dotted line.

Jerad Casper, a 2010 Tahoma High graduate, signed with Oregon State University on Nov. 17, according to a press release from the school’s athletic department.

Casper, a power hitting infielder who played second base at Tahoma, is currently playing for Mark Yoshino at Bel-levue College.

He was a second-team all-North region selection in the infield and first-team league for defense. He batted .297 with 34 RBI last season.

“Jerad was our starting second baseman for three years and was also a first team all-league selection each season,” wrote Tahoma baseball coach Russ Hayden in an email. “Jerad had an incredible senior season for us, hitting .507, with five doubles and a school record 13 home runs. Jerad was not only great at the plate, but was solid on defense as well. Jerad had the quickest hands and strongest arm that he could turn a double play when I would have wanted most second basemen not to even throw the ball to first.”

Hayden stated that the duo of Casper and Taylor Smart, who signed last week with Tennessee out of Western Nevada College, in the middle infield not many grounders made it through to the outfield.

“The two of them were as solid in the middle as Dave Bentrott (UW), and JJ Thompson (Cal Poly San Luis Obispo) 2007 grads were for us,” Hayden wrote.

Casper is part of a large group of Bellevue College play-ers moving on to Division I ball.

“Congratulations to these eight players,” said Bellevue coach Mark Yoshino in a statement. “Their scholarships are a reflection of what our program is famous for: player development to create opportunities for the future. While we are excited for these eight who have solidified their col-lege choices for next year, the high number of early signs is an indication of how deep our entire sophomore class is,” Yoshino said.

Casper signs to play baseball at Oregon State

PUBLIC NOTICESCOVINGTON

WATER DISTRICTNOTICE OF HEARING ON

PETITION FOR STREET LIGHTING

NOTICE IS GIVEN that a Petition for Street Lighting with- in the following area has been presented to the Board of Water Commissioners of the Covington Water District:

Within the Plat of Fernwood LaneA hearing on this Petition for

Street Lighting will be held at the District’s office at 18631 SE 300th Place, King County, Washington on the 7th day of December, 2011 beginning at 6:35 p.m. All persons interested in or affected by the creation of a lighting district to pay the cost of power for these street lights that desire to voice approval or disap- proval thereof will be heard and their views considered.

If the Board of Water Commis- sioners determines that the pro- posed street light district will be formed, the cost thereof will be met by future monthly charges added to the water bills of the benefited water customers.Secretary Jeff ClarkBoard of Water Commissioners Covington Water District

Published in Covintong/Maple Valley/Black Diamond Reporter on November 25, 2011 and December 2, 2011 #545492.

CITY OF BLACK DIAMOND,WASHINGTONCITY COUNCIL

ORDINANCE ADOPTED On November 22, 2011 the City Council of the City of Black Di- amond, Washington adopted the following ordinances:

ORDINANCE NO. 11-968 An Ordinance of the City Coun- cil of the City of Black Diamond, King County, Washington, levy- ing the General Property Taxes for the city for the fiscal year commencing January 1, 2012 on all property both real and person- al, in said City, which is subject to taxation for the purpose of providing revenue for Public Safety for the City of Black Di- amond for the ensuing year as re- quired by law, providing for sev- erability and establishing the ef- fective date.

ORDINANCE NO. 11-968A An Ordinance of the City Coun- cil of the City of Black Diamond, King County, Washington, speci- fying the 1 percent property tax increase for 2012. Copies of this ordinance are available for review at City Hall, 24301 Roberts Drive, or by con- tacting Brenda L. Martinez, City Clerk, at 360-886-2560.Published in Covington/Maple Valley/Black Diamond Reporter on December 2, 2011.#548782.

CITY OF COVINGTON NOTICES

ORDINANCE NO. 14-11

AN ORDINANCE of the City Council of the City of Covington, King County, Washington, AMENDING SECTION 3.70.040 OF THE COVINGTON MUNICIPAL CODE TO SET THE UTILITY TAX RATE AT SIX PERCENT AND DEDICATE ONE TWELFTH OF UTILITY TAX COLLECTIONS TO COVINGTON COMMUNITY PARK.

Passed by the City Council of Covington, Washington, at the City Council meeting of November 22, 2011 to take effect February 1, 2012.

ORDINANCE NO. 15-11

AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF COVINGTON, KING COUNTY, WASHINGTON, ADOPTING THE REGULAR PROPERTY TAX LEVY FOR 2011 FOR COLLECTION IN 2012.

Passed by the City Council of Covington, Washington, at the City Council meeting of November 22, 2011 to take effect five days after publication.

ORDINANCE NO. 16-11

AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF COVINGTON, KING COUNTY, WASHINGTON, SPECIFICALLY AUTHORIZING A PROPERTY TAX INCREASE IN TERMS OF BOTH DOLLARS AND PERCENTAGES AS REQUIRED BY RCW 84.55.120

Passed by the City Council of Covington, Washington, at the City Council meeting of November 22, 2011 to take effect five days after publication.

Published in the Covington/Maple Valley/Black Diamond Reporter on December 2, 2011. #550622.

To place a Legal Notice, please call 253-234-3506 or e-mail [email protected]

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COVINGTON | MAPLE VALLEY | BLACK DIAMOND

Grace Christian FellowshipService Times – Sunday Bible Study 10am

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than three years, Palmer said, “we can’t expect any-body to hand it to us.”

Tahoma will be tested early and often this season, taking on defending 4A state champs Lake Stevens along with Snohomish Saturday at home.

The Bears will also travel to the annual Tri-State tour-nament. Tahoma will take on Mead and Moses Lake at Moses Lake with the Spokane-based school look-ing to be another primary obstacle standing between it and its first state crown since 1996.

Plus, Senior Night will feature a tough SPSL North 3A team in Enumclaw,

which hasn’t lost a dual meet in more than six years and that was to Tahoma.

“A lot of our teammates have the drive for it,” Hopkins said of a state title. “They want it more.”

Senior Dan Haniger, who placed fourth at state last year at 135 pounds, said Tahoma has lofty goals that are realistic for a squad with the kind of depth the Bears possess.

“We definitely want to capture the SPSL dual meet title,” Haniger said. “We haven’t lost a dual meet in three years. We have to keep the focus and inten-sity.”

That shouldn’t be hard, though, since Tahoma wrestling practices are no-

toriously rigorous Haniger added, stating, “Our prac-tices are more intense than they’ve ever been.”

Haniger plans to wrestle at 145 this year.

Jesse Vaughan, who could go at 124 or 132, explained that last year Tahoma was young and an expected top-three finish at Mat Classic didn’t quite work out due to the lack of experience.

“Last year we did a really good job of getting a lot of kids to state,” Vaughan explained. “This year we need to win matches to get points.”

A ninth place finish was a result of struggles after the first round though five Tahoma wrestlers placed.

And Lake Stevens was on fire last year at the tourna-ment.

“It needs to be more of a team effort,” Haniger said. “We have 10 to 12 kids who can place. We need 10 to place and three or four oth-ers to win matches and get points.”

Vaughan said, “We’re working harder than we ever have and we’re not go-ing to let this opportunity slip.”

Tim Whitehead, who placed eighth at 103 last year, said Tahoma can not only win league but also district and regionals again as it did a year ago.

And the challenging schedule should set Tahoma up for success.

“All the traveling around, we see wrestling from all over and that definitely will help us get ready for state,” Whitehead said. “At state last year we had a lot of young, inexperienced guys and I think that pressure got to them. There’s a lot of pressure at that tourna-ment.”

Garret Autrey, who placed seventh at 160 and will wrestle at that weight this year, explained that the Lake Stevens dual will be a measuring stick for Tahoma.

“We’re definitely going to be state contenders,” Autrey said. “Lake Stevens as our first dual, I’m sure that’ll get us ready for league. And we didn’t have any seniors

last year go to state, so, all of those state placers… are returning this year.”

And don’t take their word for it. Just look at the Wash-ington Wrestling Report, washingtonwrestlingreport.com, which has Bears wrestlers ranked in all but two of the 14 weight classes. In some classes there are two Tahoma competitors ranked, for example in 126, Hopkins is ranked No. 1 while sophomore Cruz Velazquez is ranked 10th or at 132 pounds, where Palmer is the top ranked wrestler and Vaughan is ranked fifth.

No doubt Tahoma is stacked and ready to bring home the 4A state wrestling crown in February.

[ DOZEN from page 15]

December 2, 2011[18]

PUBLIC NOTICES

CITY OF BLACK DIAMOND NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARINGREGARDING THE PETITION FOR FORMATION OF

BLACK DIAMOND COMMUNITY FACILITIES DISTRICT NO. 2011-1

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Black Diamond City Council will be holding a public hearing on Thursday, December 15, 2011 at 7:00 p.m. at the Black Diamond Council Chambers, 25510 Lawson Street, Black Diamond, WA. APPLICANT: BD Village Partners, LP and YarrowBay Development LLC, 10220 NE Points Drive Suite 310, Kirkland, WA 98033ISSUE UNDER CONSIDERATION: The City of Black Diamond has received a petition from the applicant for the formation of Community Facility District No. 2011-1 (hereinafter the “District”) pursuant to Chapter 36.145 RCW. The petition proposes over $20 Million of assessments upon the property located within the boundaries of the proposed District, which consists of 377.8 acres. The purpose of the hearing is for the Black Diamond City Council to receive public comments and evidence in support of, or in opposition to, formation of the District. The City Council is required by law to take action approving or denying the petition within 30 days after the hearing.OBJECTIVE: The proposed District’s objective is to finance portions of ten specific improvements that provide special benefits to property located within the District through the application of assessments. The applicant states in its petition that the net amount proposed to be assessed on each parcel within the District is proportional to the special benefit conferred on such parcel by the ten improvements. The applicant has proposed financing the following ten specific facilities:

SR-169/Roberts Drive/Black Diamond - This construction is intended to reconfigure two intersections to increase their collective capacity to operate adequately through the completion of the proposed District’s occupancies. Located within close proximity of each other, the two intersections are the connections of Roberts Drive to S. R. 169 and Black Diamond – Ravensdale Road to S.R. 169.Roberts Drive – 750/850 Zone Water Main Extension – This main line extension is intended to provide water services and satisfy fire flow requirements for the District. The construction consists of two lines, oriented vertically, one pipe over the other, configured as a looped system.Auburn – Black Diamond Road Frontage – The proposed scope of the construction is to augment the current through traffic lanes with turning structures and intersections to facilitate ingress and egress into The Villages MPD. The current design includes two roundabouts, a center turn lane and frontage landscaping. The Improvements are grouped into three construction phases.Onsite Spine Road – The Onsite Spine Road is an in-tract road which intersects Auburn-Black Diamond Road and traverses the District in a North-South orientation. While the limits of construction are the District’s boundaries, extensions of the road will eventually serve all of The Villages Master Plan Development (MPD) when built out and occupied.Onsite Ring Road – The proposed onsite Ring Road connects to Auburn – Black Diamond Road and will travel in a circular arc as it traverses the District. This road is intended to provide additional traffic capacity within the internal road network and also provides an additional point of access to the District for fire and safety equipment.Stormwater Detention Pond – The Stormwater Detention Pond will be designed to detain, treat and infiltrate stormwater runoff from large portions of the District as well as other parts of The Villages MPD. In addition, the pond will serve as the ultimate overflow route for all stormwater runoff from the District that is not infiltrated or detained in other facilities within the District.Sanitary Sewer Lift Station – The Sanitary Sewer Lift Station will be constructed to service the District as well as other portions of The Villages MPD. At a later date, a higher capacity sewer lift station sized to service all of The Villages MPD (including the District) may be constructed in a different location.Sanitary Sewer Storage Facility – This facility will work in conjunction with the Sanitary Sewer Lift Station described above. The Sanitary Sewer Storage Facility will be sized to detain sewer flows from the full District as well as other areas within The Villages MPD.Village Green Park Improvements - These improvements will provide park space, recreational facilities, and open-space facilities for the use of The Villages MPD residents, the Lawson Hills MPDs residents, and the public at large for entertainment, assembly, and recreation.Civic Park Improvements – These improvements will also provide park space, recreational facilities, and open-space facilities for the use of The Villages MPD residents, the Larson Hills MPDs residents, and the public at large for entertainment, assembly, and recreation.

PURPOSE: The purpose for forming the District is to finance portions of the Improvements as they provide special benefits to the property located within the District.DESCRIPTION OF PROPERTY: See the below diagram showing each separate lot, tract, parcel of land, or other property in the District. The District boundary legal descriptions by metes and bounds is available for review in the Petition.

Written comments may be submitted to the Clerk’s office located at 24301 Roberts Drive, Black Diamond, WA until 5:00 p.m. on December 15, 2011, or otherwise they must be submitted at the hearing. The applicant’s petition for formation of the District and all documents related to the petition and the hearing are available for inspection or purchase at City Hall, 24301 Roberts Drive, or on the City’s website at http://www.ci.blackdiamond.wa.us under “In the Spotlight”.Dated this 18th day of November, 2011

Brenda L. Martinez, Assistant City Administrator/City ClerkPublished in the Covington/Maple Valley/Black Diamond Reporter on November 18, 2011, November 25, 2011 and December 2, 2011. #546604.

Continued from previous page

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Give us a call at [email protected]

BY STEVE HUNTER

[email protected]

King County prosecu-tors filed first-degree rape and kidnapping charges Nov. 10 against a 15-year-old Kent boy for allegedly raping a 17-year-old girl and 19-year-old woman on separate nights in late October on the East Hill.

King County Prosecutor Dan Satterberg said he will seek to have the Kentwood High School student tried as an adult, which could lead to a much longer sen-tence if the boy is convicted of the crimes.

“It is rare that someone this young is accused of serious crimes of predatory sexual violence,” Satterberg said in a King County Pros-ecuting Attorney’s Office media release. “Because the defendant is a few months shy of 16, we will proceed with a hearing to convince the Juvenile Court to relin-quish jurisdiction. I believe a case this serious belongs in adult court.”

Prosecutors charged the boy with two counts of first-degree rape and two counts of first-degree kidnapping with sexual mo-tivation.

Because the boy is 15, the King County Juvenile Court will first handle the charges. A Juvenile Court judge must order adult prosecu-tion for the boy and decline the case, which would send it to King County Superior Court.

If convicted in Juvenile Court, the boy could face incarceration up to his 21st

birthday, according to the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. If convicted in adult court, the sentence range is 28 to nearly 36 years in prison with a potential maximum sentence of up to life in prison.

Under Washington state law, an offender who commits a serious violent offense is automatically charged in adult court if they are 16 or 17 years old. The boy turns 16 in March.

The boy had a hearing Monday in Juvenile Court to find out he will return to court Nov. 30 for a status conference. A hearing to determine whether he is tried as an adult is expected to be scheduled for early 2012.

In each incident, the boy approached the woman and the girl after they had exited a bus. In each attack, the defendant allegedly told the victims he had a gun and threatened to shoot them if they did not cooperate and go with him to a secluded spot. He reportedly raped both women while continu-ing to threaten them with what he said was a gun.

Kent Police arrested the boy Monday at Kentwood. The boy initially talked to a detective after he was advised of his rights.

“It wasn’t like I wanted to do it or anything,” the boy said, according to charging papers.

The boy claimed a family friend put him up to it and threatened to harm him if he didn’t commit the rapes. He admitted to the detec-tive there were two rape

victims.In the first alleged rape

of a 19-year-old woman at about 10 p.m. Oct. 29 in the 12900 block of Kent Kang-ley Road, the boy admitted he threatened to hurt the woman and implied he had a weapon, but denied actually having a weapon. He admitted he told her if she didn’t go with him he would hurt her.

When the detective started to talk to the boy about the second rape, he stopped talking and said he wanted to talk to a lawyer.

The second incident oc-curred at around 7:30 p.m. Oct. 30 in the 26200 block of 116th Avenue Southeast, just north of Kent Kangley Road.

The girl and woman provided a similar de-scription of the boy. Kent Police released sketches of the suspect last week. The drawings generated a number of tips.

Detectives interviewed the family friend the boy referred to. The man denied any involvement in the rapes. He also told detec-tives the boy told him he did both of the rapes.

Detectives matched DNA collected from the boy with DNA evidence collected from the woman and the girl, according to charging papers.

Reach Steve Hunter at [email protected] or 253-872-6600 ext. 5052.To comment on this story go to www.kentreporter.com.

Prosecutors file charges against Kent boy in rapesKing County prosecutors also will attempt to try 15-year-old who was arrested at Kentwood High as an adult

[19]December 2 , 2011

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The number of homeless students in the Kent School District is growing every year.

After only three months of school, 158 students are seek-ing services for homelessness.

“This is already a significantly larger number than we had at this time last year,” said Elizabeth Gongora-Knight, liaison for the Kent School District’s homeless program. “There are more out there we don’t know about yet or are still in the process of screening their applications.”

For the 2010-11 school year there were about 400 stu-dents classified as homeless by the end of the year count. Based on the count so far, the number is expected to be 500 at the end of the 2011-12 school year, Gongora-Knight said.

The district partners with McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act program, which works with contacts at schools to ensure students are getting the care they need to attend and perform well at school.

The act ensures children receive free transportation to and from school and are informed about nearby homeless shelters.

The Kent School District serves more than 24,000 chil-dren in Kent, Covington and nearby unincorporated areas of King County.

King County has more homeless students than many of Washington state’s rural counties, but in King County homeless students represent a lower percentage of the total student population in the county.

The percentage in King County is 1.4 percent, which is lower than all but five other counties in Washington state, according to the Committee to End Homelessness’ website.

“We have many great organizations, such as the Kiwanis Club of Kent and the Kent Food Bank, that provide lunches and school supplies to our homeless children,” Gongora-Knight said. “We try to do all we can to help them out of their situation.”

In order for a child to receive help from the district, they must send in an application proving they fall into the McKinney-Vento Act criteria.

The act defines homeless children as, “those who lack a fixed, regular income and adequate nighttime residence.”

This includes children sharing housing due to economic hardship or lack of housing and children living in motels, trailers, cars or sleeping outside.

“Our goal is to end their homelessness,” Gongora-Knight said. “It’s a work in progress, but, the biggest thing we can do is provide awareness to our schools’ teachers and staff members.”

For the Kent School District, homeless information is confidential, so teachers don’t know if they have a homeless student in their rooms or not.

Teachers are encouraged to talk to district staff if they suspect a student might be homeless.

Signs include lack of focus, behavior issues, low test scores and a significant number of absences.

Studies show homeless children have far more health problems than other children, including asthma and emo-tional disturbances, Gongora-Knight said.

“Usually, these children are embarrassed; they don’t want the other kids to learn about their situation,” Gongora-Knight said. “This prevents many of them from coming to us and getting the help they need.”

The most common case of homelessness the district has seen is runaway or abandoned students.

“They are staying in abandoned houses and camping out in the woods,” Gongora-Knight said. “They are stressed out, living in fear and don’t know what to do.”

The district works hard to be a safe haven for these children.

“We want them to feel protected and cared for at school and we want them to feel comfortable coming to get help,” Gongora-Knight said. “We want them to know what re-sources are out there for them.”

Students in this situation can talk to their school coun-selor to receive information or contact the someone from the district’s Student Support Services Division at 253-373-7099.

Reach Sarah Kehoe at [email protected] or 253-872-6600 ext. 5056.To comment on this story go to www.kentreporter.com.

Number of homeless students grows in Kent schools

District works to provide services for children in need with nearly 160 requests since the start of the school year

“Usually these children are embarassed; they don’t want the other kids to learn about their situation. This prevents many of them from coming to us and getting the help they need.” Elizabeth Gongora-Knight

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December 7th, 4:30pm – 6:30pm

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COVINGTONC H A M B E R O F C O M M E R C EDecember 2011

December Business Spotlight

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COVINGTON | MAPLE VALLEY | BLACK DIAMONDREPORTER

RE/MAX Choice Execu-tives would like to thank the Covington Chamber of Commerce and it’s members for all they did to make our Grand Opening a huge suc-cess! A great big thank you

to the community for all your support. We are proud to be a new business in the

community. RE/MAX Choice Executives Broker/Owner, Laura Roth, says there’s no better time to open a new real estate brokerage than now. “There are many opportunities that exist in today’s market, es-pecially for fi rst time homebuyers,” said Roth. “The real estate market fl uctuates with time, and right now, in Covington, it’s a great business to be in and an excellent way to serve members of our community.” For more information, or to receive help from any of our Re/Max Choice Executives brokers/agents, please call us at (253) 220-0868 or visit www.choiceexecutives.com.

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Th e 2011 Legislative session was the hardest for me and for most lawmakers, even those who have been serving for many years. As we prepare for another round of heart wrenching budget decisions, I want to stop and share some good news that came out of my work from last session.

In the summer of 2010, I met four people in my dis-trict who live on the same block, and all four were facing foreclosure. And all four, as well as many others, were fi nding it hard to navigate the foreclosure process. Th ey were given the run-around as it was nearly impossible to get answers from the banks. Th e process was broken and homeowners were loosing their homes without even having a meeting with their banks.

Th e statistics were alarm-ing. In just two years over 77,000 families lost their homes, which means Wash-ington state went from 25th to 10th in the nation in foreclosures. In fact, be-tween 2009 and 2012 more than 132,000 homes will be foreclosed on in our state. It’s true; RealtyTrac report-ed that in September there were 935 new foreclosures

just in King County. Kent is one of the hardest hit areas

with 115 of those foreclosures.

It’s pretty evi-dent that what we have in front of us are the new faces of foreclosure. Th is is not something that happens to other people. Your

family members, friends, neighbors, co-workers, or even you can be at risk of losing your home.

Homeowners are under tremendous stress and our housing market is fl ooded with properties, many of which remain empty for a long time. And once they do sell it’s oft en at reduced rates, which negatively impacts the value of other homes in the area.

So I worked on a new system with stakeholders to help homeowners stay in their homes whenever possible, and help reach a resolution faster, instead of having to wait anywhere from 12 to 16 months. My bill, dubbed the Foreclo-sure Fairness Act of 2011, received bipartisan support and was signed by the gov-ernor on April 14.

Th e new law created the Foreclosure Fairness Pro-gram to provide desperately needed solutions to the 45,000 families expected to receive foreclosure notices

this year. Th e program was launched on July 22 and in just three months over 600 foreclosures throughout the state have been halted to give homeowners the opportunity to participate in mediation, reassuring evidence that all the work and the hurdles to pass this law were defi nitely worth-while.

In this short video, I talk about the program with representatives from the Department of Commerce and the Housing Finance Commission, as well as the Mayor of Kent, a real estate agent, a housing counselor, and a homeowner facing foreclosure who talks about

her experience and how the program has helped her.

Th e new law brings banks and homeown-ers to the table to explore alternatives to foreclosure. It requires lenders to notify borrowers prior to foreclo-sure of the availability of foreclosure counseling and the potential for mediation. Foreclosure counseling is helping homeowners un-derstand all of their options and determine the best course of action.

Adding housing coun-selors and third-party me-diation to the foreclosure process levels the playing fi eld between homeowners and mortgage lenders. And

having the opportunity to sit down face-to-face with the bank gives strug-gling homeowners a real chance to work out the best possible outcome for their specifi c situation. Th e Washington State Depart-ment of Commerce worked tirelessly to get these new resources up and running to respond to the needs of homeowners.

People were desperately asking for help, so we got to work on solutions and now it’s a reality. We have the Foreclosure Fairness Program that homeowners need!

To learn more about what this new program

has to off er, please visit the Department of Com-merce’s Foreclosure Fair-ness Program website, or call the Washington State’s foreclosure prevention hotline:877-894-4663).

State Rep. Tina Orwall, D-Des Moines, represents the 33rd Legislative District, which includes the cities of Burien, Des Moines, Kent, Normandy Park and SeaTac. She is a member of the Early Learning and Human Services Com-mittee, the Education Appropriations and Over-sight Committee, and the Judiciary Committee.

[23]December 2, 2011

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First AME ChurchRev. Dr. Carey Anderson, Senior Pastor

South CampusWorship Service: Sundays, 9:30 A.M.

Emerald Park Elementary School, 11800 SE 216th St. Kent, WA

DECEMBER WORSHIP SERVICESFor unto you is born this day in the city of david a savior which is Christ the Lord.

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

1st Sunday is Communion Sunday:2nd Sunday is Youth Ministry Sunday: 3rd Sunday is Women’s Ministry Sunday:Christmas Sunday – Joint Worship Service 10:00 AM at FAME Seattle 1522 14th Avenue, Seattle WA 98122

Minister & Coordinator, Rev. Dr. Tom CarpenterBible Study: The Book of Revelation

Wednesdays, 7:00 – 8:30 PMKent Commons (525 4th Av. North in Kent)551304

Foreclosure fairness makes a differenceCO

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